The contenders for power in Russia

Stalin

• Members of the Soviet government called Stalin the 'grey blur' - there was nothing outstanding or controversial about him
• He played a minor role in the October revolution and Russian Civil War
• He had a gift for administration and understood the way many ordinary Russians lived due to his peasant upbringing
• He had a reputation for loyalty for Lenin, but began to disobey orders when Lenin became ill
• Lenin's final instruction that Stalin should be sacked was not widely known

Trotsky

• He had planned and led the October revolution and commanded the Red Army during the Civil…